N77-C7702-S2E-AC Cisco Nexus 7702 Switch Chassis

Cisco N77-C7702-S2E-AC Nexus 7702 Switch Chassis Overview

The Cisco N77-C7702-S2E-AC is a high-performance Nexus 7702 switch chassis designed for enterprise-grade networking environments. Engineered by Cisco, this chassis delivers exceptional reliability and scalability for modern data centers and network infrastructures.

Manufacturer and Product Identification

• Manufacturer: Cisco
• Part Number / SKU: N77-C7702-S2E-AC
• Product Type: Switch
• Sub-Type: Chassis

Technical Specifications

• Series: Nexus 7700
• Model: 7702

Performance Features

• Supported Media Types: Optical Fiber, Twisted Pair
• Ethernet Speeds:
  • 100 Gigabit Ethernet
  • 40 Gigabit Ethernet
  • 10 Gigabit Ethernet
  • 1 Gigabit Ethernet
• Network Standards:
  • 100GBase-X
  • 40GBase-X
  • 10GBase-X
  • 1000Base-X

Expansion and Connectivity

• Total Expansion Slots: 2
• Optimized for flexible module additions to support growing network demands

Network Layer and Management

• Layer Support: Layer 3
• Manageable: Yes – simplifies configuration and monitoring

Power and Reliability

• Power Source: Standard Power Supply
• Redundant Power Supply: Supported for enhanced uptime
• Designed for energy efficiency without compromising performance

Cisco Nexus 7702 Switch Chassis

The Cisco N77-C7702-S2E-AC Nexus 7702 Switch Chassis represents a foundational category within Cisco’s high-end modular data center switching platforms, engineered to meet the requirements of mission-critical enterprise networks, cloud-scale infrastructures, service provider backbones, and large multi-tenant environments. This category focuses on compact yet highly capable modular chassis switches that deliver exceptional performance, scalability, and resiliency while maintaining an efficient physical footprint. The Nexus 7702 chassis is designed to operate as a core, aggregation, or spine layer component within modern data center architectures, supporting both traditional and next-generation workloads.

Built on the Cisco Nexus 7700 Series architecture, this category emphasizes deterministic performance, deep buffering, and non-blocking throughput to accommodate east-west traffic patterns common in virtualization, containerized applications, and distributed storage systems. The Cisco N77-C7702-S2E-AC chassis is optimized for environments where space efficiency, high availability, and operational simplicity are critical, while still providing enterprise-grade switching density and advanced Layer 2 and Layer 3 capabilities.

Modular Chassis Design Philosophy

Compact Two-Slot Architecture

The Cisco Nexus 7702 chassis category is defined by its two-slot modular design, which balances scalability and space efficiency. This compact architecture allows organizations to deploy a fully redundant, high-performance modular switch in locations where larger chassis systems may not be practical. Despite its smaller size, the chassis maintains the architectural consistency of the broader Nexus 7700 family, ensuring seamless integration with larger deployments and unified operational practices.

The two-slot configuration supports modular line cards and fabric modules that deliver consistent forwarding performance across all ports. This design ensures that network architects can scale bandwidth and port density according to workload demands without compromising on reliability or performance. The chassis category is particularly well-suited for edge-core roles in medium to large data centers or as a high-performance aggregation layer.

Front-to-Back Airflow and Power Efficiency

The N77-C7702-S2E-AC chassis category incorporates front-to-back airflow and optimized cooling pathways to align with modern data center thermal management practices. This airflow pattern supports hot-aisle and cold-aisle containment strategies, contributing to improved energy efficiency and reduced operational costs. The design ensures that critical components receive consistent cooling, even under sustained high-throughput workloads.

Power efficiency is a defining characteristic of this category, with support for high-efficiency AC power supplies that reduce energy loss and heat generation. This focus on power optimization helps organizations meet sustainability goals while maintaining the performance headroom required for growth.

High Availability and Redundancy Capabilities

Redundant Supervisors and System Resilience

The Cisco Nexus 7702 Switch Chassis category emphasizes nonstop operations through comprehensive redundancy features. The architecture supports redundant supervisor engines, allowing the system to maintain control-plane continuity during component failures or maintenance activities. This level of resilience is essential for environments where downtime can result in significant operational or financial impact.

Stateful switchover mechanisms ensure that control-plane functions remain synchronized between supervisors, minimizing traffic disruption. This category is designed for enterprises and service providers that require predictable uptime and consistent network behavior even during hardware events.

Power and Cooling Redundancy

Redundant power supplies and fan trays are integral to the Nexus 7702 chassis category. The system is engineered to continue operating at full capacity even if individual power or cooling components fail. This design supports maintenance without service interruption, allowing data center teams to replace components proactively while keeping critical applications online.

The redundancy model aligns with best practices for high-availability data center design, ensuring that the switching infrastructure remains robust under both normal and adverse conditions.

Switching Performance and Throughput Characteristics

Non-Blocking Fabric Architecture

The Cisco N77-C7702-S2E-AC category is built around a non-blocking fabric architecture that delivers predictable, line-rate performance across all supported interfaces. This ensures that traffic flows are not constrained by internal bottlenecks, even during peak utilization. The fabric design supports high-bandwidth applications such as distributed databases, high-performance computing clusters, and real-time analytics platforms.

By maintaining consistent throughput and low latency, this category enables organizations to deploy latency-sensitive workloads with confidence. The deterministic performance characteristics are particularly valuable in environments that rely on east-west traffic optimization.

Deep Buffering and Traffic Management

Deep packet buffering is a key attribute of the Nexus 7702 chassis category, enabling it to handle microbursts and congestion scenarios common in modern data centers. This capability reduces packet loss and improves overall application performance, especially for storage traffic and large-scale virtualization environments.

Advanced traffic management features allow administrators to prioritize critical applications and ensure quality of service across diverse workloads. This makes the category suitable for converged infrastructures where multiple traffic types coexist on the same switching fabric.

Layer 2 and Layer 3 Feature Integration

Advanced Layer 2 Capabilities

The Cisco Nexus 7702 Switch Chassis category provides a comprehensive set of Layer 2 features designed to support scalable and resilient network topologies. These capabilities enable the deployment of large VLAN domains, multi-tenant environments, and flexible segmentation strategies. The chassis supports modern Ethernet standards that ensure interoperability with a wide range of network devices.

Layer 2 resiliency features contribute to fast convergence and stable network behavior, which are essential for maintaining application availability in dynamic environments.

Enterprise-Grade Layer 3 Routing

Layer 3 functionality within this category is optimized for high-scale routing, supporting extensive routing tables and advanced protocols. This allows the Nexus 7702 chassis to function effectively as a core or aggregation router within the data center. The integration of robust routing capabilities ensures efficient traffic distribution and optimized path selection.

The category is designed to support modern routing architectures, enabling seamless integration with spine-leaf designs and IP fabric deployments.

Virtualization and Cloud Readiness

Support for Virtualized Workloads

The Cisco N77-C7702-S2E-AC chassis category is engineered to support highly virtualized environments where network agility and scalability are paramount. The architecture accommodates dynamic workload movement and rapid provisioning, making it well-suited for private cloud and hybrid cloud deployments.

By providing consistent performance and advanced network segmentation, the chassis category helps organizations maintain security and performance isolation across virtualized resources.

Integration with Automation and Programmability

Automation readiness is a defining feature of the Nexus 7702 category, with support for modern network programmability frameworks. This enables organizations to integrate the switching infrastructure into automated workflows, reducing manual configuration and operational overhead.

Programmability capabilities allow network teams to respond quickly to changing business requirements, supporting DevOps practices and infrastructure-as-code strategies.

Security Architecture and Network Protection

Embedded Security Features

The Cisco Nexus 7702 Switch Chassis category incorporates multiple layers of security designed to protect data center networks from internal and external threats. These features help enforce segmentation, control access, and monitor traffic flows for anomalous behavior.

By integrating security at the switching layer, this category enables organizations to build a more resilient network foundation without relying solely on external security appliances.

Policy Enforcement and Visibility

Policy-driven network control is a core aspect of the Nexus 7702 category, allowing administrators to define and enforce consistent security policies across the infrastructure. Enhanced visibility tools provide insights into traffic patterns and application behavior, supporting proactive threat detection and compliance efforts.

This level of control and transparency is critical for enterprises operating in regulated industries or managing sensitive data.

Scalability and Future-Proof Investment

Modular Expansion and Lifecycle Flexibility

The modular nature of the Cisco N77-C7702-S2E-AC chassis category ensures long-term investment protection by allowing incremental upgrades as technology evolves. Organizations can adapt the system to new bandwidth requirements and emerging standards without replacing the entire chassis.

This scalability supports strategic growth while reducing capital expenditure over the lifecycle of the infrastructure.

Alignment with Evolving Data Center Architectures

The Nexus 7702 category is designed to align with evolving data center architectures, including software-defined networking, cloud-native applications, and distributed computing models. Its architectural consistency with the broader Nexus 7700 family ensures compatibility with future innovations.

By choosing this category, organizations position themselves to meet future networking demands while maintaining operational continuity and architectural coherence.

Operational Efficiency and Management Simplification

Unified Management and Monitoring

Operational efficiency is enhanced through unified management interfaces that simplify configuration, monitoring, and troubleshooting. The Cisco Nexus 7702 Switch Chassis category supports centralized management tools that provide a holistic view of the network infrastructure.

This unified approach reduces administrative complexity and helps network teams maintain consistent policies and configurations across multiple devices.

Reduced Downtime and Maintenance Impact

The design of the Nexus 7702 category minimizes the operational impact of maintenance activities. Hot-swappable components and redundant subsystems allow for in-service upgrades and repairs, reducing downtime and improving overall service continuity.

This operational resilience is essential for organizations that require continuous availability and predictable network performance.